Alterna-oodles

squash that looks like pasta. Nature is cool!

In my 20s I dated a guy whose mother was a fabulous cook. When we broke up, I missed our weekly meals with her as much, if not more, than the guy himself. It was in her dining room, I first had deliciousness such as roasted lamb with mint sauce, shepherd’s pie, and artichokes dipped in butter. One night she made spaghetti Bolognese using spaghetti squash as the noodles. To me this was the coolest, most innovative use of a gourd I could ever imagine.

Though I didn’t really care at the time, noodles made of vegetables are such a healthy alternative to the flour based pasta. Here in Ireland, I’ve searched high and low for spaghetti squash to no avail. So enter Plan B, the zucchini (or courgette as they call them here).  For my first attempts at making noodles, I used a vegetable peeler and made long, fettuccine looking strips, but it was a rather time consuming process.

 

Then I found this spiralizer. Less flashy than others on the market, but small and handheld without any attachments. Perfect. There are two ends with different sized blades. Peel the courgette and stick it in the black part and twist. The noodles come out the side. I found I need to have a pair of scissors handy, otherwise they are all super long (think: peeling an apple in a spiral strip)

One courgette is enough for one person and takes about two minutes to spiralize

add a bit of salt to draw out the water

 

Zucchinis, like most vegetables, are full of water and this can create some annoying watery messes in the bottom of the bowl. I haven’t completely figured out how to solve this problem, but for now, salting and draining for 30 minutes and then squeezing out the excess seems to work.  I then fry them for a couple of minutes, though the internet says some people put them in the oven. It’s also important to use a very thick sauce or paste.

I use these noodles at least once a week with a satay sauce, pesto, or marinara sauce. Here I've gone Italian and the result was very good. The noodles on their own don't have much flavour but do absorb whatever is on top pretty well. They have a bit of an al dente bite. After a meal like this, I feel full but without the heaviness a giant bowl of pasta creates.

turkey meatballs in marinara sauce

 

Meatballs

• 300 g ground turkey breast
• 2 cloves, diced
• Fresh herbs, finely chopped
• ¼ cup bread crumbs
• 1 egg whisked
• Grated parmesan
• Salt and pepper
• Mix all ingredients by hand; shape into balls and fry or bake

Marinara

• For the base, fry 1 onion, 1 chopped celery stalk, 1 diced bell pepper until soft
• Add can of chopped tomatoes
• ¼ cup red wine
• Fresh  herbs
• Salt and pepper
• Use a hand held blender to make smooth sauce and cook down until very thick and add meatballs and simmer for a few minutes